Bringing Balance
by ZimmMaster
Summary: Naruto is sick of the glares, the hatred and the neglect; sick of pandering to the village with a mask of happiness. Seeing this, Kyuubi decides to take advantage and mold a weapon. From the ashes of innocence, a new Naruto will rise. One that is dark, one that is ruthless and one that will never stop. Grey!Naruto Older!Naruto Naruto/FemHaku
1. Author Notes

**Disclaimer:** I claim no ownership of any character, title, setting, concept, etc. belonging to the Naruto franchise. All rights and ownership belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

**Warning:** The following story is rated M for scenes of child neglect, graphic violence and sexual situations.

**Legend:**

"Speech"

'_Thinking_'

"**Demonic/Furious Speech**"

'_**Demonic/Furious Thinking**_'

_Flashbacks_

**Full Summary:**

Naruto is sick of the glares, the hatred and the neglect; sick of pandering to the village with a mask of happiness. Seeing this, Kyuubi decides to take advantage and mold a weapon. From the ashes of innocence, a new Naruto will rise. One that is dark, one that is ruthless and one that will never stop. Will he forever be lost in darkness, or will someone come to show love to Konoha's Living Wound. Older!Naruto Grey!Naruto Naruto/FemHaku

**Author Notes:**

I want to give a shout-out to Noodlehammer and his story, Reaching for a Dream. It is my number two story on this website. In it, he introduced a different concept that I had not seen before. Being, Naruto not being able to use normal ninjutsu due to having too much chakra. I rather like the idea and decided to try my own spin on it. In addition to this, I am also making him older than in cannon, being a year younger than Itachi and age 15 at the start of Canon time. Also, many have messaged me about my first story, Trials of Ice and Fire, but to be honest, after a couple semesters of college classes, I don't really like the way it is anymore and would sooner rewrite it than continue on.

Next, you may see some similarities to Star Wars in this story. That is because I've been reading a lot of Star Wars lately and decided to try and adapt and recreate some concepts in a way that would make sense in the Naruto universe. No Naruto will not be having crazy force powers that allow him to dominate everything. The only thing I will explain is that these concepts will be tied in to his elemental training, elements which will consist of fire and lightning and maybe a bit of his outfit.

Also, this story will be updated as I have time. There will be no fixed schedule because I honestly don't have one due to my work with my college classes. So please don't send me messages or reviews asking when I'm going to update, as I will not answer them.

Finally, I want to make things clear about this story. I'm trying to avoid most of the common clichés in Naruto fanfiction. The most common is the villagers beating Naruto and the inclusion of a village council. While I personally don't mind it, as long as it's not taken to some ridiculous extent that some stories (my previous one included) do, there are plenty out there that don't like the whole beating and Village Council thing.

So here is what I'm doing: There will be glares, hatred, neglect and so much more negativity on the part of the villagers, but they will not be forming mobs and chasing Naruto in the streets. It's been done many times and it is starting to get old.

In addition, there is still a council, but it has no executive power, it only consists of four people and is advisory only. Representing the military, there is Danzo and the current ANBU commander. Then representing the civilians, the elders Homura and Koharu. They both meet with the Hokage and bring to him any important issues that need discussions and at which point the Hokage takes them under advisement. There is no voting on an issue as the village is a dictatorship where the Hokage's word is law. So yes, the elders and Danzo can sputter and protest all they like but the Hokage has the final word.

That is all the important issues I can think of. So now, read and enjoy the story! Be sure to review so I know what you think about it.


	2. The Will to Live

**Part 1**  
><strong>Introduction Arc <strong>  
><strong>Chapter 1 - The Will to Live<strong>

* * *

><p>There is a torrential storm engulfing the usually peaceful village of Konohagakure no Sato; with billowing winds, torrential rain, ground shaking thunder and forked lightning illuminating the otherwise pitch black night. In the face of such a great and terrible storm almost the entire village is taking shelter in their homes. But as lightning once again flashes across the sky, it briefly illuminates a small figure sitting on the Hokage monument, more specifically, the head of the Yondaime. A closer look at the figure reveals a boy, while appearing only nine years old, is in actuality twelve. His ragged clothes, enough to barely cover him do nothing to hide his malnourished frame. His hair while normally blonde is blackened with dirt and other filth that comes from living on the streets. His face is pale and cheeks marred by lines resembling whiskers. But all of that is nothing compared to his eyes; eyes that have no place being on a child. These eyes, eyes of the deepest blue, are dulled by pain and anguish that comes from a village showing nothing but hatred and contempt for his very existence. These eyes were dead with no spark of life in them. Were it not for the rise and fall of his small chest, one would never know he was alive.<p>

You might wonder why this child was on the monument during a storm. Such a thing is dangerous, especially in this storm. A large gust of wind could blow him off, the torrential downpour could sicken him, and even the lightning could strike him at such a height. The boy knew all of this, but he didn't care. In fact, one might even say he would welcome it. Why you ask; because anything would be better than his current existence. This boy, this broken child, is Uzumaki Naruto; jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune that attacked the village on the day of his birth, the same attack that robbed him of his parents, Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. However Naruto knew none of this. If it weren't for the kindly village leader that occasionally came to see him in the orphanage before he was thrown out a week ago, he would not even know his name, due to constantly being called monster or demon.

It was during this storm that one of the ANBU that had been searching for the missing child on orders of the Sandaime Hokage found Naruto as he was sitting on the edge of the monument. Arriving in a blur of speed behind the child, the boy turned around and stared at the holes of the ANBU mask where the eyes would be, not reacting or moving beyond that. Black cloak fluttering in the wind, the weasel-masked ANBU stepped forward and gently picked up the child and cradled his malnourished frame to his own body as he disappeared in a murder of crows to report to his leader.

* * *

><p><em><strong>In the Hokage's office<strong>_

In a circular office dominated by a large desk that was full of unfinished paperwork, we see Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, standing in front of the large panoramic window that overlooks the village. The elderly man was puffing on his pipe with an anguished air around him as he once again looked over the report dated 3 days ago that is causing him so much grief.

* * *

><p><em>ANBU REPORT PRIORITY ONE<em>

_Agent: Uchiha Itachi_

_Code Name: Weasel_

_Rank: ANBU Captain_

_Subject: Uzumaki Naruto_

_Begin Report_

_I made my way to the village orphanage for my weekly check-in on the subject. Upon my arrival I could no longer sense the large chakra signature that is distinctive to the subject. Investigation revealed that the caretaker, one Ishida Kisara, decided to "kick the filthy demon out of my fine establishment to the streets where it belongs". Upon breaking the Hokage's decree regarding the subject's jinchuuriki status, I immediately incapacitated her with a small genjutsu and transported her to the T&I dept. for immediate interrogation *see attached report filed by Morino Ibiki* where no further relevant information on the location of the subject was obtained. Per the Hokage's decree, the Ishida Kisara was summarily executed and her body disposed of. I suggest that immediate efforts are made to locate the subject for fear of village retaliation._

_End Report_

* * *

><p>Turning away from the window where he could see the storm was raging, Hiruzen gazed upon the portrait of the past Hokage, more specifically, the Yondaime with sadness.<p>

_'Forgive me Minato. No matter what I try to do it appears your son will have no end to this strife. The village foolishly projects their hatred for the beast sealed within him on him when they should be celebrating his existence as a hero. You would be so ashamed of your village.'_

A surge of chakra breaks him out of his ruminations to see a murder of crows forming into the familiar shape of the ANBU commander Uchiha Itachi with the still emotionless Naruto in his arms.

"Naruto!" - The Hokage cries out in shock as he sees the deplorable condition he is in. Seeing the boy shift his gaze with those dead eyes to his self proclaimed jii-san, the old Hokage could not help but have a cold chill go down his spine as he sees the dead, incomprehensive gaze of the boy he thinks of as his grandson.

Snapping out of his shock, Hiruzen kneels in front of the boy sitting on the couch and gently asks - "Naruto? Can you hear me? What happened to you?"

However, there is no response from the boy, only an immense sadness and pain appears in his eyes as a few tears fall down his grime streaked cheeks. This only causes the Hokage's heart to be crushed with the weight of more guilt and anguish. With a breaking heart, Hiruzen turns to the now unmasked face of Uchiha Itachi and gives him a nod. Returning it, Itachi's onyx eyes morph to the distinctive red with three black tomoe of the sharingan as he steps forward and gently shifts Naruto's head so dull blue is gazing into sharingan red. Upon seeing the hypnotically spinning tomoe of the sharingan, Naruto's eyes immediately start to droop before shutting completely in sleep. Itachi then gently lays him down on the couch that looks so large on his small frame. Seeing the child shiver from the cold of being in the rain for hours, Itachi removes his cloak and gently wraps it around the now sleeping child, whose face even in sleep seems lined with pain.

Turning to look at the village leader now sitting behind his desk with his shoulders shaking due to suppressed sobs, Itachi says in a soft-spoken, yet still serious voice - "With all due respect Hokage-sama, this cannot go on. He has not smiled or laughed in almost a year now. He is continually subjected to misplaced hatred and neglect. If this continues, I fear he will not live to see his tenth birthday; weather by the village finally deciding to kill the boy or him simply committing suicide."

Sighing sadly, the Hokage nods and says - "You are correct Itachi-kun. But what can we do? I can't keep making more laws that the villagers will just disregard anyway. They already deny him service in almost every store, he is constantly sabotaged in the academy and they keep their own children away from Naruto-kun. If I push the villagers even further, they might start physically attacking him. I can't even imagine what a disaster that could be."

Nodding, Itachi adds - "Not to mention the threat of Danzo and his ROOT. He and the elders have been trying for years to get you to hand him over to them."

Hiruzen just nods silently in agreement as both men look at the sleeping jinchuuriki. With a voice that has the smallest hint of pleading, Hiruzen asks - "What should I do Itachi-kun? No matter how much I try to help, I seem to just make things worse."

Itachi contemplates this as he gazes silently at Naruto. After a few minutes of silence Itachi gives an almost inaudible sigh and turns to the Hokage with onyx eyes hard and determined saying - "I will train him. Let me take him away from the influence of the village's hatred and teach him of the Will of Fire."

Hiruzen looks up, startled and curious. He takes the pipe out of his mouth before asking - "Why would you do this Itachi-kun? And what would your own clan have to say about training the village jinchuuriki? You know the situation is delicate with them right now. They have become more and more isolated since the Kyuubi attack and I don't trust Fugaku anywhere near Naruto-kun."

Itachi, having thought of this, replies - "You can make this an S-Rank mission and then they would not have to know the details as they would be classified. They would only know that I have to leave the village for an undetermined amount of time."

Nodding thoughtfully, Hiruzen strokes his goatee and says - "Yes that would work. But are you willing to undertake this task? It will be monumental in his current condition. You could be gone for a long time."

Standing at attention, Itachi replies - "Yes Hokage-sama. I am willing to do whatever it takes for the sake of the village."

Hiruzen nods then stands with a face full of authority that only the Hokage can make. Seeing his leader's change in demeanor, Itachi immediately kneels with his right arm crossed over his chest, making a fist over his heart in the traditional ANBU salute.

Seeing this, Hiruzen then gives the order - "ANBU Captain Weasel. I am assigning you the S-Rank mission of taking the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, Uzumaki Naruto, away from the village for two years. During which time you are to train and instruct him to the best of your abilities to live the life of a shinobi."

Nodding in acceptance, Itachi responds - "Hai, Hokage-sama, I will not fail you."

Itachi rises as Hiruzen moves back behind his desk to write out the mission scroll and stamps it with the Hokage Seal. Handing the scroll to Itachi, Hiruzen says - "Train him well Itachi. Show him the Will of Fire that Konoha prides itself on and send me weekly reports via your summons. Gather your gear. You leave in one hour."

Pocketing the scroll, Itachi then picks up Naruto and disappears in a murder of crows.

Meanwhile, unknown to the two, there was someone hidden in the office who had heard the entire conversation.

_'I must inform Danzo-sama of this.'_

The cloaked figure, with a mask that has the kanji for Ne, silently disappears from the Hokage's office.

* * *

><p><em><strong>One hour later at the village gates<strong>_

Itachi, who has Naruto draped across his back with another cloak to shield him from the rain, was making his way out the village gates when he senses a spike of potent killing intent. Sharingan activating on reflex to the presence of the killing intent, Itachi detects a familiar chakra signature. Puzzled, and mildly alarmed, Itachi slowly turns to a seemingly empty space in the shadows of the gate and waits for the person to make himself known.

"Where are you going with Naruto, Itachi?" - The voice asks in a deadly serious tone.

The person, who steps out of the shadows, reveals himself to be attired in the standard jonin outfit with the addition of a half mask covering the end of his nose and lower face, had gravity defying silver hair that stands up even in the torrential downpour and a scarred eye covered by his hitai-ate. This left the remaining eye, a hard onyx color pinning Itachi in place with his senpai's piercing gaze. His stance, while appearing to be relaxed almost to the point of lazy, is in fact on guard and ready to strike at the slightest move at the person who appears to be kidnapping his sensei's son.

Deliberately lowering his guard and bringing his hands up to show cooperation, Itachi asks carefully- "What are you doing here Kakashi-senpai?"

The now identified Kakashi steps forward and blocks the path out of the gate. Raising a kunai and falling into a ready stance born of experience, Kakashi retorts with his gaze and tone unchanged - "That does not matter Itachi now answer the question. Where are you going with Naruto?"

"I cannot give you the details Senpai. Only that this is a mission from Hokage-sama and we will be gone for two years." - Itachi replies as he slowly reaches into his cloak revealing the mission scroll bearing the Hokage Seal.

Slowly stepping forward with his guard never dropping, Kakashi reaches out and takes the scroll from Itachi who has not moved a muscle. Upon verifying the authenticity of the scroll, Kakashi drops his ready stance and adopts a solemn air about him as he looks at the blonde haired child covered by the cloak on Itachi's back and asks - "Are things now so bad that he has to be removed from the village?"

Itachi glances back at the child he had watched over for the past two and a half years and only nods. Kakashi sighs and then shunshins away with a parting order to take care of him. After taking one last look around the village he will not see for the next two years, Itachi steps beyond the borders of the gate and vanishes in a burst of speed to travel the rest of the day and through the night toward their destination.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Near the outskirts of Hi no Kuni<strong>_

It is now approaching dawn as the duo of Itachi and the still slumbering Naruto arrive at an old Uchiha clan hideout that has not been used since the Second Shinobi War. Having passed the edges of the storm several hours ago, the now dry Itachi takes Naruto inside and prepares to rest for a few hours before starting his mission.

As Itachi makes his way to one of the rest areas, he lights the torches with a small katon jutsu, throwing the barren room in a dull orange light. Taking a look around and seeing the layers of dust that covered everything Itachi uses a fuuton jutsu to clear a small area of most of the dust and dirt. Reaching into his cloak, Itachi removes a small scroll that he rolls out onto the floor. It bears many seals with kanji explaining their purpose. Channeling some chakra through the seal marked bedding; two neatly rolled and packed futons pop out.

Laying them both out, Itachi gently places Naruto on one before removing his large cloak, mask and ANBU armor. Then he proceeds to lay down on the other one. As Itachi looks out one of the windows towards the direction of Konoha, a stray though crosses his mind as he succumbs to exhaustion.

_'Forgive me Outoto. But young Naruto needs me more than you do right now.'_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Inside Naruto's mindscape<strong>_

Inside the dark and dank sewer full of large pipes and many tunnels, one can make out a faint crimson light at the end of one that, when followed, leads to the bars that extend to ceiling. Behind these bars, we see an enormous red eye full of unfathomable hatred and malice narrow in thought as the mighty biju contemplates all it had witnessed over the past day.

Seething in hate due to the presence of one of the wretched Uchiha, a snarl rips free from his mouth revealing menacing teeth the size of a full grown man as a chilling voice echoes out of the depths of the mindscape.

**"It will soon begin."**

* * *

><p><em><strong>The next afternoon<strong>_

Dull blue eyes full of pain open up to see an unfamiliar figure taking two fingers away from his forehead as sharingan eyes fade to black.

"Hello Naruto-kun. Do you know who I am?"

Looking around Naruto spots the familiar weasel mask before asking in confused voice - "Weasel-san?"

At Itachi's nod, Naruto continues with his questions.

"Why am I here Weasel-san? Where am I?"

Sitting down in front of the confused child, Itachi starts explaining what is happening.

"First off Naruto-kun, my name is Uchiha Itachi; do not call me by my ANBU name while we are here. As for why you are here; the Hokage has decided to allow me to take you away from the village and train you in the ways of the shinobi."

A spark of life enters the blue eyes at the word training and Naruto gives off the faintest of smiles as he asks an almost desperately hopeful voice - "Jii-san is letting you train me?"

With a gentle smile, Itachi nods and says - "That is correct. Are you ready to begin?"

Standing up Naruto gives a genuine smile that brings hope to Itachi's heart and says in a determined voice - "Hai Itachi-san; I am ready to begin."

* * *

><p>And so began the routine that would slowly but surely bring Naruto out of his depression. The month was slow as Itachi concentrated on correcting the damage to Naruto's body. He started him off on simple strength and endurance drills, as well as feeding him nutrient rich meals designed to help correct the malnourishment. When the two weren't training, they were working on cleaning up their new home. It had been a long time since the place was inhabited, so there was much to do.<p>

The building itself had all the dust and dirt removed as well as repairing various structural damage caused by years of exposure to the elements with no one to maintain it. The grounds were also cleared up as well. With the grass being trimmed and overgrown plants removed, the training fields also had the sparring dummies repaired and cleared of debris.

Many other things went into the clean-up of the place and pretty soon, the place looked livable once again. During this time, Itachi assigned most of the menial work to his young charge so as to begin the foundations of recovering his strength. Eventually, with all the manual labor combined with exercise and the strict nutritional regiment, Naruto began to grow and fill out into what an athletic twelve year old should look like.

For the next few months, Itachi began training Naruto not only physically, but mentally as well. It abhorred Itachi when he realized the standard education that all the children receive in the academy Naruto only got the bare bones of. He already knew of the sabotage in the academy, but to deprive Naruto of such basic knowledge of living was despicable.

So after evaluating the knowledge and skills Naruto already had and finding them either completely wrong of so substandard they might as well not even exist, Itachi decided to start practically from the very beginning. He began with writing and comprehension skills, eventually moving on to basic mathematics and history. He also began to impart various other skills that will help him such as manners and etiquette, survival skills, emotional control and finally meditation.

Naruto began soaking everything up like a sponge. There was no subject that was too boring or uninteresting to him. Naruto began looking up to Itachi as an older brother figure and did everything he could to make him proud. He always put in 110% into everything he did; his exercises, his studies, all of it.

As the months kept passing, Itachi began increasing the difficulty of his drills and studies as well as beginning instruction in basic forms of taijutsu. It was here where Naruto truly excelled; he kept growing stronger and stronger with each passing day at a rate that astounded Itachi. However, not everything went smoothly. It was when Naruto began chakra training that one issue became readily apparent.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback - 9 months into training<em>

_"Try again Naruto-kun." - Itachi asked after seeing Naruto blast through yet another tree in an attempt to learn tree climbing._

_Naruto, dressed in a simple black set of training clothes once again stepped forward to the tree and channeled as little chakra as he could before he was once again blasted back._

_Motioning Naruto over to him Itachi decided to activate his sharingan in order to try and figure out the problem. However, upon activating it Itachi almost recoiled at the sheer amount he saw packed in a small frame._

_'He has as much chakra as the Hokage. No wonder he cannot do this.'_

* * *

><p>Naruto simply had too much chakra to be able to perform standard shinobi techniques and it would only continue to grow as he aged. Naruto was very disappointed and began to work on his chakra control with an almost religious fervor in order to try and overcome this obstacle. But no matter how much he tried, his chakra was simply too large and dense.<p>

When this became readily apparent, Itachi expected Naruto to once again fall into a depression; however Naruto surprised him with his acceptance and began to try and see it as an advantage. Then for the rest of the year, he threw himself into his training with almost suicidal zeal that had Itachi concerned. But no matter how much Itachi decided to try and get him to slow down, Naruto always disregarded him.

By the end of the first year, Naruto was already almost chunin level in skills. It was almost disconcerting how much he was improving. The next few months of the second year was dedicated to elemental training. After discovering his affinities, which were an extraordinarily strong affinity to fire and an almost equal level in lightning, Naruto and Itachi began to try and experiment in things that could be done with Naruto's elements seeing as normal ninjutsu and genjutsu were forever out of his reach.

It was here when Itachi began to back off and let Naruto become more self-reliant, seeing as he had little left to teach him. He had nowhere near the amount of chakra that Naruto had so he could not teach him genjutsu, which was his forte, and he was only able to teach him the most chakra intensive techniques that he knew, such as the _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu _and other such techniques that required an enormous amount of chakra to perform.

It was about seven months into the second year when things turned to a darker direction for Itachi. He began to notice small things about Naruto that started becoming worrisome the closer they came to returning to the village. There appeared to be a darkness growing in Naruto that Itachi had no idea what to do about and by the time the final month came around, he became cold to everything, even him.

Naruto was very careful hiding this transformation from Itachi but he still let some things slip occasionally; on overly viscous strike in a spar, a distinct lack of mercy in some bandit situations that he and Naruto used for some training and just general ruthlessness. Every time Itachi tried to confront Naruto about this, he was always brushed off and had the subject changed. Even if he insisted, Naruto clammed up with the emotionless look that had taken to being permanently etched on his face and refused to talk to Itachi for a few days, instead choosing to viciously destroy the training grounds and surrounding area.

Itachi was worried about returning to the village with Naruto in such a state, but he had no choice. The reports he received from the Hokage were becoming worrisome and it looked like his clan was further destabilizing. He had to get back and figure out what was happening as it was starting to look like the village would be plunged into a civil war.

Eventually, the day came when they had to return to the village and Itachi had no idea just how much things were about to change.

* * *

><p><strong>There is Chapter 1. I'm going to reiterate just in case some skipped my previous author note. This will be updated when I can find the time and will to do so. Please don't send me messages asking for a rush. All this was is an idea that popped into my head while I had some time to myself. There will be NO definite schedule for updates. As for my other story, I don't know if I'm going to continue it or not. Some things I just don't like about it anymore. I'm still very busy with college so that situation remains unchanged. Now that this is out of the way. Please enjoy and leave me your thoughts in a review if you feel inclined to do so.<strong>


	3. Reunions

**Part 1  
>Introduction Arc<br>Chapter 2 - Reunions**

* * *

><p><em><strong>On approach to the village gates<strong>_

Two figures can be seen approaching the main gate at a leisurely pace. One standing at 5'6" dressed in Konoha ANBU gear; the other standing at 5'4" dressed in an all black outfit with his face covered by the hood of a cloak. These two figures were Uchiha Itachi and Uzumaki Naruto. A gust of wind briefly reveals Naruto's face with a Konoha hitai-ate on his forehead. The blond's face is now less rounded and more pointed from the loss of baby fat that comes with puberty.

Within the shadows of his hood, he could not help but look upon the gates of Konoha with contempt; a soft, animalistic growl and spike of killing intent breaking through the emotionless facade he had placed around himself. This drew the attention of his sensei, causing him to stop walking and ask - "Is there a problem Naruto-kun?"

Immediately feeling the killing intent disappear as Naruto firmly closed his emotional barriers, he only gives a brief shake of his head as he continues on toward the village gates with Itachi only half a second behind as he wore a concerned frown behind his ANBU mask.

_'He may suppress his feelings but I can still see the signs of his rage. If the mere sight of the village causes a reaction strong enough to break through his barriers, I shudder to think what will happen when the villagers find out he is back.'_

Arriving at the check-in station Itachi notices the chunin duo of Izumo and Kotetsu looking at them but making no move to approach the cloaked duo, choosing instead to eye them warily. Motioning Naruto to wait, Itachi makes his way over to the check-in station and says - "ANBU Captain Weasel returning from an S-Rank mission."

Itachi's voice seems to break the two out of their stupor and they wave them on with a reply of - "Welcome back ANBU-san. Please report to the Hokage for debriefing."

Leaving with a nod, the cloaked duo walk into the village and pause at the sight of the place they have not seen in two years. Turning to address his silent companion, he is interrupted before a word can be spoken.

"You go report to the Hokage Itachi-sensei. I would rather not walk through the village." - Naruto curtly says.

"Why not Naruto? I'm sure Hokage-sama is looking forward to seeing you." - Itachi responds curiously.

Naruto turns away and vanishes in a murder of crows with a parting response of - "I will see him later, when there are not so many of these... _people_ around."

Hearing the barely veiled contempt when he said people, Itachi only sighed before vanishing in his own crow shunshin to the Hokage's office.

* * *

><p><em><strong>In the Hokage's office<strong>_

Sarutobi Hiruzen was taking a well-deserved break from the never ending paperwork that seemed to be the bane of his life; drinking tea while overlooking the village he is the leader of.

_'It has been two years already. They should be coming back soon.'_

Hiruzen turns and looks at a picture on his desk of a younger version of himself and a much younger version of Naruto sitting on his lap both looking at the camera with bright smiles on their faces. As Hiruzen was staring at the photo, a stray crack suddenly appeared directly over Naruto's place in the picture. Staring at the crack, the old Hokage cannot help but be struck by an ominous feeling of foreboding. Before he can begin contemplating the bad omen however, Hiruzen sees the signature murder of crows form the shape of Uchiha Itachi who quickly removes his weasel mask revealing his face bearing an uncharacteristic frown on his usually stoic visage.

_'I have a bad feeling about this. Where is Naruto?'_

Before the Hokage can ask about the missing blond, Itachi quickly says - "We might have a problem."

The ominous feeling that has been plaguing him only increases at this one sentence spoken from Itachi. Lighting his pipe, Hiruzen takes a deep puff before addressing his agent.

"Report."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Red Light District - Konoha<strong>_

Naruto, now away from his sensei allows his stoic visage to fall. In its' place is feeling of rage and power, barely kept in control, boiling just under the surface. As he walks through the red light district that is the location of his apartment, memories spring to the forefront of his mind unbidden; memories of pain and suffering.

Shaking them off as he nears his building, Naruto tries to bring his rage under control. However, upon sight of the place, Naruto wants nothing more than to go on a murderous rampage. The building had been all but destroyed; the foundation was crumbling, all the windows were destroyed, graffiti covered every inch of what was left of the walls, and it even looked like somebody tried to set the building ablaze judging by the scorch marks.

His chakra and bloodlust creating an almost visible aura around him, Naruto snarls and thinks - _'Why am I not surprised that these worms took away the one place that I could call my own in this damned village. They boast that Konoha is the home of the Will of Fire, the friendliest village in the nations and then they do this; what hypocrites.'_

Naruto then hears the familiar sinister voice of his tenant saying - **"I truly wonder how much longer you can resist before giving in to your instincts human. You were a fool to put any value in the words of your foolish sensei. Nothing has changed and it never will; unless of course, you decided to do something to make them change."**

Shaking his head mentally, Naruto responds - _'You were right Kyuubi. I was foolish; however, that does not mean Itachi-sensei was completely wrong. If he was, why would he take the time to train me? Yes, I know the Hokage ordered him to; but Itachi-sensei is an S-Rank ninja. He could have disposed of me any time we moved beyond the gates and made it look like a complete accident.'_

Naruto hears the mighty biju snarl and retort - **"Because, you foolish boy, he does not want the 'village weapon' to be a blunted sword, they need a weapon who's blade is sharp and deadly. Make no mistake boy, that is all the village will ever see you as; a weapon to be used. You are a jinchuuriki and of the strongest biju; that kind of power is used to keep the so-called peace of your village by using you as a threat to the other villages against retaliation. Do you really think they will just dispose of their greatest asset?"**

Naruto hears a chuckle as the mighty beast continues - **"And you know it, don't you? That is why you never revealed my presence in your mind to that damnable Uchiha you call a sensei. You know that only I can give you the power you need to break the chains that bind you to servitude."**

Adopting a voice that simply radiates the promise of power, the Kyuubi tempts - **"You need only give in Naruto. Pledge yourself to my teachings and all my knowledge, all my experience will be within your reach."**

While not the first time Kyuubi made such an offer; Naruto did not immediately reject it as he did during the early days of his tenuous relationship with the biju inside of his body. However, as the days grew closer to his return to the village that scorned him, he could not help but give it a few more seconds of consideration before ultimately rejecting it. But now that he was back in the village, surrounded by these parasites, the offer was looking very tempting indeed.

As Naruto continues to walk on without giving an answer, the mighty beast cannot help but be immensely pleased by the turmoil he can feel in his container.

_**'Hehehehe. It won't be much longer.'**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Back in the Hokage's office<strong>_

Sighing in weariness as Itachi concludes his report, the Hokage can only wonder where things began to go wrong. Looking at the teen across from him he asks - "So it was shortly after you let him sign your summoning contract that he began to show this darkness you mention?"

Nodding in confirmation, Itachi thinks back on the strange events that occurred.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback - 1 year 8 months into the training trip<em>

_Watching his student with pride as he runs through his drills, Itachi decides that he should give him a reward._

_"Naruto-kun, come over here please."_

_Glancing over to his sensei, Naruto nods in acknowledgement as he finishes the kata he is working on and makes his way over. Kneeling in respect, Naruto asks in a blank voice that is so similar to Itachi - "What do you require of me sensei?"_

_Motioning him to rise, Itachi says - "I have a gift for you Naruto-kun."_

_Eyebrow rising in curiosity, Naruto remains silent as Itachi flies through a few hand seals and presses his hand on the ground causing a puff of smoke to appear. Only having both eyebrows raise betray Naruto's surprise as a tall scroll appears._

_Recognizing a summoning contract from his previous studies, Naruto quickly arrives at the logical conclusion. A small smile appears showing his pleasure as he says - "You are giving me your summoning contract."_

_Itachi nods and explains with a hint of pride shining through his usual stoic self - "You are my greatest student Naruto-kun; my apprentice in all but name. It is only fitting that I give you my summoning contract, provided you pass their test gain their approval of course."_

_Nodding, Naruto takes the scroll and asks - "What is the test Itachi-sensei?"_

_"When you sign your name in blood, a crow will appear to judge you of your worthiness. By looking into your eyes, the crow will be able to read your very essence and speak to you; no secrets will be hidden from its gaze. If you pass the test, the red of your blood will fade to black; if you fail, your name will vanish from the contract." - Itachi replies._

_A flash of concern appears in Naruto's eyes before it instantly disappears. Most would have missed it, but not Itachi. Vaguely curious but putting it out of his mind, he asks - "Are you ready?"_

_With only the barest hint of hesitation, Naruto unrolls the scroll before biting his thumb and signing his name. As soon as the last stroke ended a puff of smoke reveals what could only be an elder crow. Its usual black plumage has hints of grey and its bright red eyes are alight with immense wisdom. _

_Itachi watches as the blond knelt before the crow and gazed into its' eyes, awaiting the verdict. A variety of emotions play across his face in rapid succession before they rapidly disappear. First a flash of surprise, no doubt from hearing a voice speak in his head. Then there is concern, which Itachi is not surprised about, however he himself became concerned when anger appears shortly followed by what only could be hatred. The sheer depth of it surprises Itachi greatly; but as quickly as it appeared, it was gone._

_'This could be problematic. Where did such hatred come from?' - Itachi thinks._

_Itachi is brought out of his thoughts when the crow breaks away from Naruto and looks at him and says - "He is worthy."_

_Without another word the crow disappears and the red color of the blood fades to black signifying acceptance. However, Itachi did not notice any of this, his mind on the mental message he heard the elder crow leave in his mind._

_'Watch him. He is dangerous.'_

_Flashback End_

* * *

><p>Curiously, the Hokage asks - "Did you ask Naruto what the crow said to warrant such a reaction?"<p>

Nodding, Itachi replies - "I did and he replied that it was not important. Curiously enough though, I caught a brief hint of indecision before he responded. It was after this that he became more distant and ruthless."

Hiruzen was not called the Professor for nothing; he knew very well what such darkness in Naruto could mean. But he was an old man; one who thought of the young teen as his own grandson. He did not want to consider the ramifications his mind could not help but play out in his head.

Trying to find some way to explain it, some explanation that he could use to help the whiskered teen, Hiruzen asks - "Do you think the Kyuubi can have anything to do with this Itachi? Could it be influencing Naruto?"

Itachi frowns and shakes his head saying - "No it appears the Kyuubi still remains dormant inside of the seal. I've seen no sign of its presence in Naruto's actions. That however is what I'm unable to understand; from what I know of the Kyuubi, it thrives on negative emotions. Why would it not stir in the face of Naruto's hatred? It is confusing."

Hiruzen has no answer to that and tells Itachi - "There is still much we don't understand about the seal that holds the Kyuubi at bay inside of Naruto. Minato truly was a genius at fuinjutsu; crafting a seal powered by the Shinigami is something that has never been done before. Even Jiraiya, who possesses the key to the seal and Minato's original notes, was unable to break it down. There is no way to predict how the seal will interact with Kyuubi's presence."

"Which means Naruto's darkness is his own." - Itachi remarks.

Sighing, the Hokage nods his head in confirmation. Placing his hand over his eyes and looking as if the weight of the world was pressing down on his shoulders, Hiruzen says - "This is my fault Itachi. I should never have announced Naruto's jinchuuriki status to the village. But I had thought I was following Minato's last wish for his son to be seen as a hero. I _knew_ how jinchuuriki were treated in other villages, but I thought the village's love for the Yondaime would outweigh the negative stigma that comes with being one. I see now that was the wishful thinking of an old fool that wanted only to see the best of his village."

While wishing he could reassure his leader, Itachi knew he could not because the old man was correct; announcing Naruto's status to the village _was _a mistake. So Itachi stood in silence while waiting for the Hokage to regain a hold of his emotions.

Gathering himself, Hiruzen motions Itachi to take a seat and asks - "What do you recommend we do with him Itachi? You have been with him the longest, so I will defer to your judgment. But as it stands Naruto's attitude and obvious disdain for the village makes him a flight risk. If he were to leave the village, I shudder to think of the consequences."

Taking the offered seat, Itachi begins thinking aloud - "We can't send him to the academy, he is too strong and I fear if we tried it would only increase his resentment towards us; thinking we were trying to hold him back."

Curious, the Hokage asks - "What level of strength is he currently at Itachi?"

"He is around high chunin to low jonin at the moment. He has no genjutsu and only a small amount of powerful ninjutsu, due to his immense chakra reserves. What he lacks in techniques however, he more than makes up for with raw elemental manipulation and impressive taijutsu. He is growing physically and mentally at an impressive rate as well, due to his constant training. If he continues at his current rate of growth, he could be near the level of elite jonin by the time he turns eighteen." - Itachi responds to which the Hokage nods in contemplation.

Resuming his explanation, Itachi says - "So the academy is out of the question. I don't think putting him on a normal squad will work either, due to the attitude of the village's attitude and Naruto's own. A genin squad is too weak for Naruto and has too much interaction with the villagers and a chunin squad, while in terms of skill he would do nicely, still has a lot of interaction with the villagers."

Stroking his chin in a contemplative manner, Itachi continues - "We could try placing him in a jonin squad, but at his current level of strength he would more than likely hold the squad back. We also run an increased risk for Naruto's safety as most of this generation's jonin lost family in the Kyuubi attack. They have been some of Naruto's strongest detractors."

Itachi pauses before looking straight in the Hokage's eyes as he says - "He needs to be away from the public eye of the village, for his own good and the good of the village. He also needs a safe way of venting his negative emotions in a way that works for the village, rather than against it. Finally, he will need to be watched due to his status as a flight risk and at the same time not put at risk of betrayal by his own comrades. Put that all together and I see only one possibility."

Hiruzen looks sad but resigned as he utters one word - "ANBU."

Itachi nods in confirmation as he continues speaking - "That is logically the best choice. We can submit him as a recruit under an apprenticeship program. This will allow him to safely grow stronger and at the same time keep him out of the public eye of the village due to the secrecy that comes from being an ANBU."

"Who will be his mentor Itachi, you?" - Hiruzen asks.

Shaking his head, Itachi responds - "No, I've taught him almost all that I can due to his restrictions. I think that he needs someone similar to him to open up to; someone that he can form a bond with. Though I did try during our trip to get him to open up, I am not the right person for this. However, we are too different; I'm afraid our relationship will be nothing beyond the respect that comes from a sensei and student. Between this and other issues that I have to resolve, I don't think I can provide what he needs."

Hiruzen, knowing by issues Itachi means the current instability in his clan, nods in acceptance and both men fall silent as they begin pondering the delicate situation.

Sighing, the Hokage says - "I will have to think on this Itachi. In the meantime, you are granted the mandatory two weeks off to rest and recuperate as required from an S-Rank mission."

Standing and bowing to his leader, Itachi says - "Thank you Hokage-sama, I will leave now. Naruto wanted me to tell you that he would come and see you later."

Hiruzen nods and dismisses his agent who shunshins away.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Konoha Streets - Red Light District<strong>_

Mitariashi Anko was curious about a certain blond haired gaki that she was following; curious and intrigued. The last time she had seen the child was just before here apprenticeship to Orochimaru began. Back then, he was a depressed boy with bouts of cheeriness and could not fight his way out of a wet paper bag. Now however, he simply radiated bloodlust and power; something that Anko was greatly interested in.

So here she was following him as he walked through the nearly deserted streets of the village; watching as the few villagers that were there glared and whispered angrily behind his back. It was after a clearly drunk and barely standing man decided to break away from his buddies and throw an empty sake bottle at him that things began to get very interesting.

* * *

><p><em><strong>With Naruto<strong>_

Naruto was walking down the streets with a scowl etched on his face while trying to figure out a solution to his lack of housing problem. He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost missed when the glares and whispers began to start.

_"So the demon is back. I thought he was dead."_

_"Why is that piece of filth back in our village?"_

_"He should have just stayed away."_

Naruto, hearing all of this due to his chakra enhanced hearing, glares fiercely at the villagers and spikes his killing intent at them, making them instantly freeze and back away. It was then when his senses detected something being thrown at his head.

Naruto reflexively tosses a shuriken at the offending object and hears the sound of shattering glass as the shuriken hits its mark. He then turns to the person who threw the object, which a quick glance reveals to have been a sake bottle, and shoots a large dose of killing intent at the man. However, in the man's inebriated state, he completely ignores the danger and stumbles right up to the now fiercely glaring blond.

The man stumbles forward until he was mere feet from the blond and Naruto is immediately hit with the stench of sake wafting off this man, showing how drunk the man really is. The man ignores Naruto's perusal and pokes him in the chest repeatedly while he drunkenly slurs - "You should *hic* not have come back demon. *hic* We were better *hic* off without you."

Naruto looks up and glares at the drunken fool and orders in a deadly voice tinged with malice - "You need to move out of my way. I have no desire to deal with you parasites now."

The man only laughs drunkenly and continues speaking oblivious to the rapidly rising bloodlust saying - "And why should I listen to a demon? *hic* You should just go die somewhere and be out of our lives forever."

He then spits right in Naruto's face at which point Naruto's patience snaps and a red haze begins to envelop his vision.

Wiping the spit off his face with an enraged look, Naruto backhands the man into a wall, the force of the impact cracking the wall and a few of the man's ribs. It is the pain from this that helps bring the man out of his sake induced haze. It is with a clearer head that the man realizes the danger he is in as Naruto brings the full force of his rage to focus solely on him. He immediately begins trembling in fear as Naruto stalks toward him with the grace of an apex predator, the heavy black cloak concealing his body making it appear that Naruto is almost gliding towards the man.

With his bloodlust giving an almost palpable aura about him, Naruto adopts a feral grin that shows off his larger than average canines and asks - "That's not fear I smell, is it?"

Being only a civilian and unused to the feeling of killing intent, let alone a concentrated dose that was currently directed at him, the man can only tremble as he begins crying and begging for his life.

"Please don't kill me! I'm sorry all right! Just don't kill me! Please!"

Naruto only laughs as he points his hand at the trembling worm and shoots raw raiton chakra from his fingertips to engulf the man. Naruto's adrenaline surges as he hears the man begin screaming in agony. Cutting off the lightning after a few moments Naruto gives a sinister laugh as he stalks over to the man and kneels so his mouth is right by the man's ear. With a brief chuckle he softly asks - "Yes that hurt didn't it? You don't want me to do that again do you?"

Tears and mucus running freely down his face, the man can only blubber out pitiful denials and pleas for mercy. After taking a few seconds to enjoy the groveling, Naruto then whispers - "Sorry, all out of mercy."

After this ominous statement the man soils himself in pure terror. Upper lip curling in disgust Naruto steps back and shoots lightning out at the man once again while saying - "Scream weakling! I want to hear your suffering!"

So lost in his bloodlust and the man's screaming he does not notice the blue lightning gaining a violet tinge as the Kyuubi starts leaking his chakra into Naruto's system, driving him further and further insane with bloodlust. He does not notice the remaining civilians fleeing in terror, or when his senses register a chakra presence that behind him. It is only when a kunai flies past his face, cutting his cheek does he regain control and cut off the lightning from killing the man who was now unconscious and covered in electrical burns.

Looking down at the half dead and smoking civilian he mentally reprimands himself - _'Damn it, I lost control.'_

Naruto with an immense strength of will, pushes his bloodlust away from the surface and adopts his stoic visage as he turns and regards the person who snapped him out of his blood rage. The person, a woman he sees, has brown eyes, spiky purple hair done up in a ponytail with her bangs partially concealing her hitai-ate and is scantily dressed in black sandals, shin guards, mesh armor, an orange miniskirt and brown trench coat that barely conceals his modesty.

Meeting her gaze, Naruto looks at her face expecting to see anger and disapproval; however instead there is only a smirk with her eyes showing happiness, intrigue and... _satisfaction?_

Naruto regards the last with a hint of surprise but allows none of it to show on his face as he waits for the woman to speak. However the woman says nothing, merely content to twirl the ring of a kunai around her fingers with a smirk on her face. Naruto frowns slightly and wonders if the woman is going to speak. A few more seconds pass before Naruto decides to speak up and ask - "What do you want kunoichi?"

The woman chuckles and says - "You don't recognize me gaki? I'm hurt."

Naruto is confused at the woman's statement and looks closely at her trying to remember where he had met her before. Finally a memory flashes to the forefront of his brain.

_A girl with spiky purple hair and brown eyes in the orphanage sharing a part of her meal with him when he was denied food once again, the same girl protecting him from the older kids picking on him, treating his cuts and bruises._

More and more memories flashed by in an instant as Naruto finally recognizes her and asks - "Anko-neechan?"

The now identified Anko nods and smiles, saying - "Good to see you again gaki. You've grown up into quite the psychopath haven't you?"

Naruto only shows a feral smile in response to which Anko returns with one equally as sadistic. Stepping forward and brazenly throwing an arm around the blond, Anko draws the blond into a half-hug that allows her assets to press against Naruto's arm. In spite of himself, a flush creeps up Naruto's face as he relaxes and says with amusement - "Still as blunt and brazen as ever. You haven't changed a bit."

Anko only laughs in response and turns her gaze to the man that Naruto tortured, saying - "You on the other hand have changed quite a bit; nice to see that you're not so much the wimpy boy that you used to be Gaki."

Naruto nods in agreement and asks - "You aren't going to say I should have gone easy on him are you?

Shaking her head, Anko responds - "Hell no. I was watching; the drunken slob started the whole thing. So he has only himself to blame. I'm just glad I got to see it; that was some light show you put on. It was quite _exhilarating_."

The last word was said in a sensual whisper as Anko slid around so her assets were pressed into Naruto's back. She then licked the blood that was drawn by her thrown kunai off Naruto's cheek. The whiskered teen, still in the grips of puberty, could not help but have his minor flush evolve into a full blown blush as he felt the soft mounds pressing into him.

Trying to get a hold on his hormones, Naruto took a deep breath and asked - "Can you please get off of me Anko-neechan?"

Anko pouts and lets go, teasingly saying - "Fine, go and ruin all my fun why don't you."

Naruto and Anko both start chuckling in amusement of the situation. Stepping out of Naruto's personal space, Anko shoves her hands in the pockets of her coat and asks - "So what are you doing out here so late?"

Naruto shakes his head with a scoff and responds - "It seems in my absence that the villagers decided to destroy my apartment. So I have no place to go right now and was just looking for an isolated spot away from these worms to get some rest before I went to see the Hokage."

Anko scowls and shakes her head, saying - "Well that sucks; I guess while some things change, others stay the same."

Naruto only nods as the two lapse into a somewhat awkward silence. It is after a minute or so of walking that Anko then slaps a fist into her palm and decisively says - "Well that settles it; you are just going to have to crash at my place. It's huge and nobody ever shows up; perfect for two outcasts like us."

Naruto, not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, smiles and says - "Sounds perfect Anko-neechan. Where is it?"

Smiling, Anko cheerfully says - "I live in the tower located in the middle of training ground 44."

A chuckle escapes Naruto as he smirks and says - "The Forest of Death, how fitting."

Nodding excitedly, Anko says - "I know right, its perfect for us. It's isolated, so we are away from the village, there is plenty of food and water to be found in the forest, not to mention that the place is dangerous so it provides a good training area. I've lived there since I was brought back to the village. Now let's get going, it's been a long day for both of us."

Naruto nods and they both disappear with a crow and snake shunshin.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Forest of Death<strong>_

Arriving at the tower, Anko opens the gates with a flourish and says - "Welcome to my place Gaki. Now follow me and I'll take you to where we are staying."

With Naruto following, Anko goes past the lower floors used by the participants in the Chunin Exams and lead him to a cleverly hidden staircase at the rear of the arena balcony. Upon reaching the top there is a door which Anko opens to reveal a large furnished living area.

Starting the tour, Anko says - "This is the tower's residential wing. The room we are in now is the main living and work area. The doors on the right lead to the bathing area and onsen. It is the only one so you and I will have to share."

Seeing Naruto's eyes widen in surprise and then try to speak, Anko cuts him off and bluntly says - "Look Gaki, as you may have guessed from my outfit I'm not too big on modesty. There will be times when you and I will see each other with little to no clothes on. I'm telling you now that you will have to get over it. Seeing each other naked is not a big deal in my opinion, just don't start perving on me or my friends and we will be okay."

Lightly blushing, Naruto nods in understanding before something Anko said registers and he asks - "Friends? I thought it was just you and me here Anko?"

Adopting a sheepish expression, Anko scratches her head and says - "Yeah, I forgot to mention that. I got two friends that occasionally come here and crash from time to time when they want to get away from it all. I'll have to introduce you to them. But they are cool and won't bother you if you don't want them too."

Still frazzled, Naruto carelessly asks - "So they don't care that I'm the Ky-"

Naruto's winces as he realizes his mistake and looks sharply at Anko who is watching him with speculative look on her face.

Moving closer to him, she says - "So you _do _know that you're the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. I wonder how you found out considering it is an S-Rank secret that nobody but the Hokage was to tell you. Seeing as no one would dare violate the law the only way you could have found out is if..."

Anko leaves the statement open, clearly expecting Naruto to say the words. Grudgingly, Naruto realizes he already blew it and says - "...if I met the fox myself."

Anko nods seriously and asks - "I assume by your wincing you did not plan on letting anyone know you were in contact with the fox."

Naruto nods and asks - "Are you going to tell the Hokage?"

Anko just looks at him for a minute before she smirks and shakes her head, saying - "Nah, you obviously have your reasons and I don't particularly care what they are. So it's no biggie, I won't be telling anyone."

Naruto visibly relaxes and gives a thankful smile to Anko. Anko winks and then says - "Back to what I was saying; no my friends don't care that you hold the fox. They are probably one of the few in this village that don't have their heads up their asses and actually see you as the person who holds the fox, rather than the fox itself."

Anko turns and continues - "Moving on with the tour the doors on the left lead to the bedrooms. You can have your pick of the rooms except for the three at the end of the hall on the left side; those are reserved for my friends and me. Once you pick your room, mark the door and then you can have free reign with it."

Motioning to the staircase directly opposite the entrance, Anko says - "Finally, that staircase leads to the top levels of the tower. The first level is the storage area and armory which contains a lot of old equipment that has not seen the light of day for a long while. The second and third levels are the training rooms; they have pretty much everything you could ever want up there. Each room is organized with a specific type of training in mind so take your time to explore them all and above that leads to the roof of the tower."

Nonchalantly taking off her coat leaving her upper body clad in only her mesh armor, she tosses it on a nearby couch and plops down, motioning Naruto to do the same. Naruto blushes at the view of Anko's chest, but tries to shake it off and removes his own cloak revealing his well muscled body clad in simple mesh shirt with a black sleeveless vest and black pants.

Anko raises an eyebrow at how defined he looks considering his age but blows it off with a cheeky grin and says - "And that concludes Anko's tour of the tower. Do you have any questions?"

Looking curious, Naruto begins with - "I would think that the village would not just leave a bunch of equipment lying around. Do you have any idea why it is still here? Also, is any of the equipment in the storage area still usable?"

Nodding, Anko responds - "Yeah, though it is old, this place used to be ANBU headquarters before its location was compromised back in the second shinobi war. It had to be evacuated rather quickly and they left most of the equipment behind. I suppose in all of the chaos they never really returned for the equipment and by the time the war was over, most of the ANBU who were here were either dead or retired so this place just gradually faded from people's minds until the village decided to use it for the Chunin Exams. Even then, they just renovated the lower levels that contain the cafeteria, barracks and arena; leaving the upper areas alone."

Giving a smirk, Anko says - "After I found the stuff shortly after I moved in, I decided that if the village was dumb enough to forget a bunch of ANBU grade equipment, they didn't deserve to have it so I never informed them of my findings; thinking that I might have a use for it someday."

Looking thoughtful, Anko continues - "As to any of it being usable; I'm not really sure. I think it would be fine but I never really went in there and took a detailed look, so I don't really know what the condition of all the stuff is in. Considering the fact that this was ANBU headquarters, I assume the gear was well kept but it has been a long time; so I can only guess that most will be fine and only need minor repairs, if any at all."

Nodding in satisfaction, Naruto remarks - "Good, the less time I have to spend in the village shops the better off I'll be. I would not put it be surprised if they tried to sell me faulty or sabotaged equipment in the hopes I'll die on a mission. I'll definitely have to take a look later."

Nodding her head in agreement, Anko says - "Yeah they tried to do that very thing to me once, but I taught them that it was never a good idea to screw with me."

The two soon relax and hours pass as the two old friends spend their time catching up. Naruto at Anko's urging decided to fill her in on his life since she left and his time on the training trip and what he learned there. Anko in turn did the same with her time with Orochimaru and his eventual betrayal of her, even going so far as to show Naruto her curse seal. It was after that she talked of her return to the village and how the villagers have been treating her like crap, same with most of the ninja; deeming her a traitor. By the time dusk rolled around, the two were immensely surprised at just how much they revealed to each other and how similar their lives were.

Naruto, turning to look out the window to seeing the sun falling below the tree line sighs and says - "I still have to go speak with the Hokage. I promised Itachi-sensei I would do so."

Seeing his unhappy expression, Anko remarks - "I take it you're not looking forward to it. Why not? I thought you and the old man were close?"

Naruto scowls as he pulls his cloak back on, saying - "That was before I knew how much the old bastard ruined my life. By revealing my jinchuuriki status to the village he basically damned me to a life of scorn and hatred. After I met the Kyuubi and it informed me of why it was inside me, all the crap in my life began to make sense; from the teachers sabotaging me in the academy to the civilians throwing me out of their stores with words of hatred directed at me. All of it can be laid at his feet so forgive me if I'm not feeling charitable to the old fool."

Looking curious, Anko asks - "Are you going to tell him you know about Kyuubi?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Naruto replies - "I'm not sure yet; we will see how the conversation goes. One thing is certain though; I'm going to make it clear that I'm not some happy-go-lucky fool that will bear the treatment of the villagers anymore."

With that final statement, Naruto shunshins away to what is sure to be an enlightening confrontation.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Meanwhile at the Hokage's office<strong>_

Hiruzen was getting very worried; Itachi said that Naruto would be by to see him yet the day was nearly done and he had not. There was also the report that one of his agents had brought to him regarding a civilian man that appeared to have been assaulted by someone matching Naruto's description. The attached follow-up report filed by the hospital explains in detail how the man was electrocuted with large amounts of raiton chakra, enough to literally fry his nervous system almost to the point of complete shutdown. As it stands, it looks like the man will be kept in a medically induced coma until he heals and even then, he will have trouble moving for the rest of his life.

So yes, Hiruzen was very worried indeed. His worry only increased when he senses an immense chakra signature appear out of nowhere directly behind him. Spinning around, he notices a black cloaked figure crouched on the window sill staring at him. Stepping into the light, the figure lowers his hood and reveals the face of the blond that he was just thinking about.

* * *

><p><em><strong>With Naruto<strong>_

Arriving at the Hokage Tower with his chakra signature suppressed as far as he was able to, Naruto extended his senses and found that even at the end of the day the tower was still full of people. Not wanting to make an entrance in such a crowd, Naruto turns his gaze upward and notices the open window to the Hokage's office.

Sighing in exasperation, Naruto silently leaps to the window sill and looks in on the old man that ruined his life. Seeing as he was unnoticed at the moment, due to the man being so lost in his thoughts, Naruto took the time to look at the man he once called jii-san. He was looking worried about something; what it was, he didn't care. It was only when he saw the Hokage pick up a document, his sharp eyes easily seeing how his name featured prominently that he became interested.

He felt a brief flare of amusement as he quickly realized that it was an incident report on the man he almost killed earlier today. Deciding to make his presence known, Naruto stops suppressing his chakra signature and watches as the Hokage spins around and regards him warily. Stepping forward into the light, he lowers his hood and turns his glacial gaze on the Hokage, saying - "It has been some time Hokage-sama."

The man relaxes and smiles slightly, saying - "It is good to see you Naruto-kun. Welcome back."

Naruto's gaze morphs into a contemptuous glare and with his tone reflecting his expression, he says - "Some welcome I received when I found out the parasites you call your people still bear the same hatred towards me. It seems they even destroyed my home while I was gone. You would not happen to know anything about that, would you Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage's smile disappears at hearing the contempt in his voice and he says sadly - "Yes, I knew. I tried to save what I could, but when I found out, the building was already destroyed. The civilians wouldn't spend the money to repair it either. I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but-"

"Save your apologies old man. I have no need for them." - Naruto interjects with a fierce scowl on his face.

Hiruzen's mood falls even further into sadness as he says - "It's true then, you have changed. What happened Naruto-kun?"

Naruto sneers and says - "I had my eyes opened to the corruption inside this village during my time away and now being back has only reaffirmed my beliefs. It has only been one day and already these parasites point and whisper hateful words when they think I cannot hear them. They glare and spit at my very presence. One drunken fool even had the nerve to attack me, but he learned his lesson."

Hiruzen frowns at that and interjects, saying - "Yes I received the report on it. Did you have to go so far Naruto? You nearly killed that man!"

Naruto snarls and angrily says - "He deserved it. He is the one who struck first, so I struck back with no mercy."

Shaking his head, the Hokage asks - "But why did you go so far? He was only drunk, he did not deserve the treatment that you put him through."

Pacing angrily, Naruto explains - "Don't you get it? That imbecile in the hospital is my message to these idiots in the village. I will no longer be content to sit and take the abuse the heap on me anymore; if they act against me, I will not hold back!"

Standing angrily, the Hokage shouts - "I cannot just allow you to attack the citizens of this village Naruto!"

Matching his tone, Naruto retorts - "Then make it clear to those villagers of yours they are not to act on their misplaced hatred! I know the laws very well Sarutobi; all civilians are prohibited from attacking the shinobi and if they do, the shinobi is allowed to retaliate in any manner he or she sees fit to do so."

Hiruzen slumps back into his chair in defeat at this statement, knowing it is true. Soon the office falls into silence; Naruto still glaring and Hiruzen with his head clasped in his hands. Gazing sadly at Naruto, he asks pleadingly - "How did it come to this Naruto-kun? Did you always feel this way? What did I do to earn such hatred from you?"

Naruto, in spite of himself, cannot help but feel pity for the old man he once admired. Calming down, he decides to reveal the truth and says in a bitter tone - "I think you know _very_ well where you went wrong Hokage-sama."

This sentence is said while Naruto places his hand over his stomach above the seal. This gesture is not missed by Hiruzen whose eyes widen and he looks at Naruto in question, who nods showing that he is in fact aware of what he contains.

With a voice heavy with guilt, he says - "You are referring to me informing the village of your jinchuuriki status. How did you find out?"

Knowing he had to answer this carefully, he says - "Between seeing a seal appear on my stomach every time I mould chakra and all the books on various subjects that Itachi-sensei made me read and it was pretty easy to figure it out once I put all the pieces together."

It was a lie, of course, but a good one that the Hokage seemed to accept judging by his nod.

Sighing deeply, Hiruzen says - "This is not what I had in mind for our discussion tonight Naruto-kun. It has been a long day, for the both of us. Why don't you take some time to relax and get settled into the village and we can talk again in a few days."

As Naruto nods and prepares to leave, Hiruzen remembers that Naruto has no place to go and asks - "Do you need a place to stay Naruto-kun? With your apartment out of commission, I'm sure we can let you stay in a spare room at the Sarutobi compound."

Shaking his head with a smile, the first one Hiruzen sees since his return, Naruto says - "No, I recently ran into an old friend and she has graciously allowed me to stay at her place. She seems to be in a similar situation as I am, in terms of being shunned in this village. Regardless, I was pleased to see her again."

Curious and hopeful, Hiruzen asks - "Who is it Naruto-kun and where is this place?"

Turning away, Naruto responds - "Mitariashi Anko; she and I were friends back in the orphanage when we were younger. I'm staying inside the tower in training ground 44 with her. If you need me, you can find me there."

As Naruto disappears in his crow shunshin, Hiruzen cannot help but grow hopeful and think - _'So you have not been completely lost to darkness. I believe we have found your mentor Naruto-kun.'_

* * *

><p><strong>There is chapter 2. Let me know what you think.<br>**


	4. Descent into Darkness

**Part 1**  
><strong>Introduction Arc <strong>  
><strong>Chapter 3 - Descent into Darkness<strong>

* * *

><p><em><strong>Tower Roof - Forest of Death<strong>_

It has been two months since Naruto's return to the village and things have gone as well as could be expected after so many changes lately. Naruto, now dressed in his new attire consisting of a dark grey long-sleeved hooded shirt with shoulder cut dark leather wrapping, dark grey trousers, dark leather calf braces, knuckle-studded leather wrap arm bracers, a black sleeveless surcoat bound at the waist by a dark leather wrap, black combat boots and a sword strapped diagonally across his back, stood with his arms crossed over his chest and his hood shadowing his face as he stared out at the village beyond the boundaries of his home slowly disappearing as the sun set behind the mountain, pondering the events that have occurred since his return.

First, was the second talk he had with the Hokage.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_It had been three days since he gave the Hokage his ultimatum and from what Anko has told him, the village heard his message loud and clear. After the initial protest that was immediately crushed when it was proven the now comatose man had instigated the conflict, all the villagers could do was grumble at the so-called injustice of it all. But it had served its purpose; the villagers now feared him which Naruto thought was a very nice change. Yes, it gave him no small amount of amusement to walk the streets now and see the worms that used to glare and shout now tremble and cower if he so much as looked in their direction._

_Now he was on his way to the Hokage's office to finish the talk they started the day he arrived back in the village. As he walked through the streets at a leisurely pace, watching the civilians cower and the ninja tense as he passed them, Naruto felt something bump into his leg. A glance down revealed it to be a ball. _

_Picking up the object he turns in the direction it came from revealing a small group of children around four to six years old. They were definitely fearful when they saw the dark figure who had their ball. _

_'No doubt due to their parents warning their children who I am and to be careful of him.' - Naruto thought in amusement._

_The area was quiet now, with the villagers worried about what he might do. Slowly he walks over to the oldest looking one, a girl with brown hair and green eyes, and holds out the ball to the now trembling child and asks - "Is this your ball child?"_

_The girl shakily nods and Naruto motions for her to take it, which she does slowly. Naruto lets her take the ball and as soon as his hand is free, he moves it towards the girl, making the child as well as the surrounding villagers tense in fear. But he only pats the girl on the head and says - "Try not to lose it again, do you understand?"_

_The girl nods and shakily says - "Um, yes Uzumaki-san. Thank you."_

_Removing his hand, the girl quickly moves back to the group but not before turning around and giving a shy wave. Naruto only gives a small nod and resumes his walk towards the tower, not knowing that a pleased Hokage who was watching the blond with his crystal ball had seen the whole thing._

_The fox then decides to make his presence known and ask - __**"Why did you not retaliate boy? I thought you hated these people."**_

_Shaking his head mentally, Naruto replies - "My soul is dark and full of hate, but I am not yet so heartless as to strike a child undeservedly."_

_The fox scoffs but says nothing further. Wanting to get away from the now whispering villagers, Naruto decides to speed things up and shunshins away. Upon arriving directly in the Hokage's office, he noticed an ANBU already there with the Hokage; one with a familiar spiky purple hairstyle and snake mask over her face. Naruto gives her a nod of acknowledgment before facing the Hokage, asking - "Why have you summoned me Hokage-sama?"_

_After wincing almost unnoticeably at the carefully blank tone, Hiruzen responds - "I have called you here to inform you of your placement in the shinobi ranks. I have given this much thought since you left the last time we spoke and I have come to a decision I think you will be content with."_

_Nodding in curiosity, the whiskered teen motions the Hokage to continue, which he does saying - "Taking into account your skill level and current mindset, I have decided to grant you a place in the ANBU Black Ops under an apprenticeship program."_

_Naruto smirks in satisfaction, having been concerned the old man was going to try to place him into some genin squad in order to try and__ get him to interact with the villagers and hopefully grant them forgiveness or some other foolishness that he would never have consented to. Deciding to get the obvious question out of the way, he asks - "While that sounds interesting I wonder what does the apprenticeship program entail?"_

_Relieved that Naruto appears to be considering the offer, Hiruzen explains - "It is an old program; one definitely not used often and only once in recent times, on your previous sensei actually. Basically, it is used when a candidate who has the correct mindset, but not the level of strength needed to be a full time member is assigned a mentor, usually a senior agent, who will then train the candidate for a certain period of time. After that time period lapses, he or she will then undergo a strict series of tests to determine if that person is now ready to become a full member of the ANBU corps."_

_Nodding in understanding, Naruto motions to Anko and asks - "Am I to assume due to my familiarity with Anko, she is going to be my mentor?"_

_The female ANBU staggers and then slouches, taking off her mask to reveal the pouting face of Anko who asks - "How did you know who I was Gaki?"_

_Naruto allows a smile of amusement to cross his face as he says - "It might have something to do with the fact I saw your ANBU gear among the mess you call your room when you showed it to me the other day."_

'_Not to mention that she often walks around topless in the tower in an effort to rile me up and makes no effort to hide her ANBU tattoo.' - Naruto adds mentally._

_Hiruzen palms his face in exasperation as Anko scratches the back of her head sheepishly and says - "Uh, oops?"_

_Turning back to the Hokage, Naruto asks - "While I have no objections to this arrangement, I must confess that I am curious as to why you would do this for me? To be honest, I was expecting you to try to put me in some genin squad considering my age."_

_The Hokage scrutinizes Naruto for a minute before he sighs and says gravely - "I'm going to be honest Naruto-kun; you have shown too many psychopathic tendencies since your return here to place you in a normal squad and I see this as a way to give you an outlet for them while at the same time keeping you out of the public eye of the village. I'm hoping Anko can teach you control over your psychopathic tedencies and help you be able to function as a productive member of the village."_

_Naruto narrows his eyes at the explanation that basically says he is dangerous and needs to be watched, but after a few minutes thought he deems it a fair trade-off to be out of the spotlight in the village. _

_'Less murdered idiots that way.' - he reasons._

_The blond, with his face still seemingly carved from ice, says - "I accept."_

_End Flashback_

* * *

><p>Another event was finally meeting Anko's friends about a week after that talk with Hokage. That turned out to be mildly embarrassing for him.<p>

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_Naruto stood aching and covered in sweat and blood after another grueling training session. Feeling the burning sensation as the Kyuubi's chakra heals his body he decides to have a soak in the onsen to relax and recover his strength. Returning to his room, he strips off his sweaty clothes before making his way to the bathing area where he quickly scrubbed himself free of the sweat and blood that stuck to his body. After rinsing himself free of the soap, he grabs a towel and throws it over his shoulder without a care for his modesty and opens the door to the onsen only to find it occupied by Anko and two other, admittedly beautiful women, all of them nude and enjoying the heat from the onsen._

_Hearing the door open, two of the women start in surprise with Anko only chuckling at a soon-to-be amusing situation. Upon seeing Naruto, also nude walk into the room completely uncovered, the two yell in surprise and duck into the water to hide their bodies while sending a fairly impressive killing intent at Naruto._

_Raising an eyebrow at their reaction and the surprisingly large amount of killing intent directed at him, he couldn't help but remark - "That is an impressive killing intent you two are directing at me. However judging by your reaction to my presence, I can assume that Anko neglected to inform you of our arrangement, likely so this very situation or something similar would occur. Am I right, Anko?"_

_The two women's eyes widen and turn to Anko who is wearing a 'who, me?' expression that does not fool anyone. A soft splashing is heard as Naruto enters the onsen completely disregarding the two women that are currently glaring daggers at him. _

_He then takes a moment to get comfortable before calmly saying - "Before you two come to the wrong conclusion, let me just inform you that I am not here to indulge in some perverse activity; I am simply here to relax after my training. I can only assume you are here for the same purpose as I, so you might as well relax and enjoy the warmth the onsen provides as well. Do not be concerned about your lack of clothing as Anko is a lot less caring of her modesty than you two appear to be, so it is not like I have not seen the female form in a less than fully clothed state before."_

_The two women look at each other and slowly rise out of the water again allowing their breasts to be once again visible. While ignoring the pouting Anko, the black haired one asks in a soft voice still tinged with aggravation - "While you need no introduction Uzumaki-san, may I ask what this arrangement you and Anko have is?"_

_Naruto, despite his words is still only a teenager and cannot help but stare for a second or two before looking at her face, trying to ignore the blood rushing to his lower extremities. _

_Having noticed his brief perusal, the two women cross their arms over their chests and began to look angry before Naruto reassured them - "Forgive me Kunoichi-sans, but I am still a teenager and not yet in control of my body in such situations, I mean no offense. Now if you don't mind, you already know who I am, but I'm afraid I don't have the same luxury. Anko only told me she had a couple of friends come here occasionally, but did not deign to tell me your names."_

_The two shoot another look at Anko before turning back to Naruto with the purple-haired woman saying - "My name is Uzuki Yugao, Uzumaki-san."_

_Naruto nods and turns to the black-haired one who says - "My name is Yuhi Kurenai, Naruto-san."_

_Nodding again, Naruto says - "A pleasure to meet you both; forgive me for not bowing, but I'm afraid my reaction to your nudity is making itself known and I do not wish to offend you."_

_Anko chuckles and says - "No need to be shy Gaki, Nai-chan and Yugao-chan need to loosen up. Don't let them stop you from whipping it out." _

_Yugao and Kurenai shoot a sharp look at Anko even as they blush at her crude remarks. To their relief however, Naruto only looks vaguely amused as he shakes his head and subtly moves so his now stiff manhood stays hidden below the water. Not that it does much good due to the clearness of the water, but it is the principle of the matter that counts._

_Naruto deciding that the tension had been sufficiently dispelled, answers the question that Yugao and Kurenai posed before - "As to my arrangement, Anko was kind enough to open her home to me, seeing as my previous home was destroyed by the villagers during my absence from the village. I am now living with her and I am grateful for it as I don't have much interaction with the villagers anymore, due to the isolated location of this place."_

_Flashback End_

* * *

><p>After that rather embarrassing incident, the four spent some time getting to know each other and pretty soon they began to get along reasonably well. They still occasionally stop by the tower to see Anko, but they also take the time to try and talk with him as well. However, Naruto was not very interested in being all buddy-buddy with the two women like Anko was, so he was not very receptive and only engaged them in some polite conversation before excusing himself after a few minutes. The only thing that he got out of their repeated presence in the tower was that they would sometimes help him with his training by giving him advice and an occasional spar. Yugao was especially helpful after she had got him interested in kenjutsu.<p>

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_Naruto was walking through the upper levels of the tower, heading toward his usual training area when his ears picked up the sound of metal striking metal. Curious, he decided to deviate from his current path to the source of the sound. Upon arriving at the correct room, he entered to see Yugao currently sparring against a few kage bunshin using nothing but a sword._

_Naruto was instantly entranced as he watched the sword user fight against three opponents at once, the four locked in a deadly dance where the slightest misstep could spell disaster and even death at the hands of her own clones. It was amazing to him. As he made no effort to hide his presence, Yugao quickly noticed him and dispelled her clones, ending the spar. _

_Seeing the blond's mesmerized expression on his usually expressionless face, Yugao chuckles and asks - "I take it you are interested in kenjutsu Uzumaki-san?"_

_Naruto quickly realizes that he is still staring, shakes himself out of his stupor and responds - "That was very impressive Uzuki-san and yes I am very much interested."_

_Yugao, who sees the opportunity to remove some of the mystery surrounding Anko's mysterious little brother figure, decides to offer - "Would you like me to show you a few things Uzumaki-san?"_

_Naruto adopts an excited grin that shows off his larger than average canines and nods._

_Flashback End_

* * *

><p>That small introduction instilled a passion in Naruto that he had not felt since the beginning of his training with Itachi and he began to learn kenjutsu like he was born to wield a blade. Yugao, seeing the raw potential that he had, started coming around more often to give him kenjutsu lessons and making sure to leave plenty of scrolls on the subject for him to read when she left.<p>

Naruto soon began focusing on his kenjutsu and practiced every technique he could find for many hours each day with an occasional spar with Yugao to judge his progress. This lead to Naruto now wearing the sword he found in the armory crossed diagonally over his back.

In addition to his kenjutsu, Naruto's own training with Anko was going very well, better than it ever was with Itachi. Both Naruto and Anko were of very similar mindsets, meaning aggressive, ruthless and unmerciful, so they meshed very well together. Itachi was just too much of a pacifist for his tastes, one of the few things that annoyed him about his former sensei. Speaking of which, Naruto had not once seen the stoic Uchiha since his return, having only received a scroll from a messenger crow saying that he had urgent clan business to take care of and to apologize that he had to leave him so abruptly.

After reading it he could not help but feel a slight pang of hurt before he ruthlessly crushed it and the scroll. The Kyuubi had pointed out to him that all Naruto ever was to Itachi was a mission to complete; he never truly cared about him. Naruto could see that Kyuubi was probably right, but some part of him, the little boy who looked up to Itachi as an older brother, did not want to believe it and held on to his hope that Kyuubi was wrong.

Naruto's days were quickly becoming routine. He would wake up, eat a nutrient rich meal, spend all morning practicing his kenjutsu and personal techniques then eat a small lunch and then spend his afternoon training with Anko and occasionally Yugao when she had breaks from her ANBU duties. Then after the day was done, he would relax in the onsen, go eat a filling dinner and then meditate on the roof of the tower for several hours before going to sleep.

Bringing himself back to the present moment, Naruto resumes the aforementioned meditation, another thing he had taken to doing in an effort to keep his blood lust from overwhelming him again. Breathing deeply, he began bringing up all his negative emotions, his hate, rage and fury, letting them fill him up until he can concentrate on nothing else. First it starts as it always did with a spark, then that spark becomes a flame and that flame becomes an inferno. A well of power, barely contained rises up and threatens to break free as Naruto struggles to control it.

For several minutes he appeared to be succeeding, though not without a great effort. Soon however, the ground around him started shaking and the wind began to burn as Naruto slowly began losing the battle to keep control.

His eyes snapping open to reveal an indomitable will behind them and he mentally screams - _'NO! I WILL MASTER THIS! I REFUSE TO LOSE CONTROL!'_

With a bestial growl, Naruto slowly begins to exert his will over the now swirling maelstrom of chakra around him, drawing it back into him bit by bit. The exertion of this monumental task is easily seen on Naruto's face and body during this process. Every muscle is clenched and straining, veins stand out on his neck and temples, his teeth are clenched and sweat is freely pouring down his face; but through it all, Naruto perseveres and soon the storm raging around him begins to calm until eventually it disappears completely.

Clenching his fists until they begin to bleed, Naruto shouts out and punches the ground in frustration at his failure saying - "Damn it! I'm getting better, but I still can't control it completely!"

Utterly drained and frustrated at his continued failure, Naruto slowly climbs to his feet and makes his way down to his bedroom to rest. However, unknown to him due to his exhaustion, someone had watched almost the entire spectacle.

In the shadows of the forest not far from the tower, a pair of fully matured sharingan morphed into the shape of a three-bladed shuriken before fading away into the darkness with only the caw of a crow signaling his departure.

_'Goodbye Naruto-kun.'_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later that night<strong>_

A loud roar that only Naruto could hear startled him from his sleep saying - _**"Wake up boy!"**_

Instantly awake and alert Naruto scans his immediate area for threats before relaxing and asking - _'What is it that requires you to disturb my rest Kyuubi? I must have enough strength to continue my training tomorrow.'_

The deep voice snarls before saying - _**"Insolent boy, I will disturb your rest if I deem it necessary. Now quit your infernal whining and stretch out with your senses to the village and tell me what you feel."**_

Knowing it was pointless to argue; Naruto focused his chakra and began searching for what had the Kyuubi so agitated.

After a few moments of not finding anything out of the ordinary, Naruto responds - _'I don't sense any-'_

Naruto's eyes snap open in surprise as his senses reveal several chakra signatures in the village suddenly disappear all at once, too many to be natural.

_'What is going on Kyuubi? Is the village under attack?' _- Naruto asks curiously.

The great fox scoffs and says - _**"I don't know boy, but I suggest you go and see. This could be an excellent test for your strength against a real enemy."**_

Naruto's blood starts boiling in excitement at this statement and he quickly grabs his sword before vanishing towards the source of the disappearing signatures.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Outside the Uchiha District<strong>_

Arriving silently at his destination, Naruto is immediately hit with the strong scent of blood in the air. Channeling chakra into his eyes, he can see that there are several bodies lying in the street; some impaled with kunai and shuriken, others slashed by a sword.

Naruto gives a feral grin as he surveys the carnage with gleeful eyes.

_'So, somebody is massacring the Uchiha clan, how very interesting. Don't you agree Kyuubi?' _- Naruto asks the fox with a sinister chuckle.

Kyuubi responds with its voice dripping in satisfaction - _**"I have waited a long time to see this. Ever since Uchiha Madara enslaved me with that infernal sharingan, I have desired nothing more than to see his wretched clan fall."**_

Wanting to investigate, Naruto mentally says - _'Well then, why don't we get a closer look at this mystery assassin's handiwork and if we are lucky the assassin might still be here.'_

After this thought Naruto, with the Kyuubi's help, suppresses his chakra down as far as it will go, further than he would have been able without the Kyuubi's help and makes his way into the bloody district towards the nearest active chakra signature.

* * *

><p><em><strong>With Itachi<strong>_

"You are not even worth killing, foolish little brother." - Itachi says even as his heart is breaking.

Stepping forward and making sure that Sasuke sees the mangekyou sharingan spinning in his eyes, he says - "If you wish to kill me, foster your hatred and despise me until one day you come before me with the same eyes as I. Until then keep on surviving in an unsightly manner as this. Now go and flee; cling to your wretched life."

Sasuke says nothing as he tries to run, but only falls over in exhaustion, his brain shutting down to cope with the trauma it endured. A tear falls down his face as he watched his little brother's eyes close. Itachi prepares to flee before he feels an immense killing intent appear out of nowhere.

Spinning around, Itachi quickly identifies a figure shrouded in the shadows of the moonlight, making only his silhouette visible. The figure jumps down into the flickering torchlight to reveal his former apprentice with an enraged look on his face.

* * *

><p><em><strong>With Naruto<strong>_

Naruto's eyes blaze with hatred and the feeling of betrayal settles deep inside him as he sees his former sensei attack his little brother.

_'So Itachi, finally showing your true colors.' _- Naruto snarls mentally.

Naruto watches as his former sensei taunts his already traumatized brother to the point where he passes out. Seeing Itachi preparing to flee, Naruto drops all pretenses of hiding and unleashes his killing intent on the soon-to-be dead Uchiha.

Naruto watches as Itachi spins around to look at him but he can tell that Itachi does not recognize him due to being shrouded in the shadows of the moonlight. Jumping off the building he was crouched on and into the flickering torchlight, Naruto growls ferally and says - "So, after all that preaching on the Will of Fire, your love for your family and the village, this is what it comes to."

Itachi says nothing; his mind is feverishly working to figure a way out of this now dangerous situation. He may be stronger than Naruto at full strength, but he was exhausted from killing his clan. Not to mention his eyes were burning from his use of the mangekyou sharingan.

Glaring right into Itachi's face, Naruto asks - "Tell me Itachi, was any of it real? Your praise, caring, pride, trust and more that you showed me during my time with you; was it all a lie?"

Itachi only stares at him with that infuriating stoic look on his face before responding - "Yes, it was. I care nothing for you Naruto. You were a mission to complete, the weapon I was meant to forge. But you were a failure; I never counted on the darkness you harbor in your heart. You will never willingly be Konoha's weapon, you despise the village too much."

Naruto's head fell with each sentence pouring from his mouth, his shoulders started shaking. "So, the truth is finally revealed. - Naruto whispers in a deadly voice.

Slowly, the air started to shimmer and a blood-red chakra began to permeate the air bringing with it an oppressive feeling that the village of Konoha had not felt for almost fourteen years.

* * *

><p>Itachi only had a moment to see Naruto's red eyes before he vanished in a blur of speed that he could barely track even with his activated sharingan. Catching a flash of chakra to the left with his periphery vision, he quickly brings his ANBU tanto up to block a swift strike that would have decapitated him.<p>

_'This is bad, I have to stop him before the feeling of Kyuubi's chakra can spread to the rest of the village.'_

With this thought, Itachi engaged Naruto in a fierce kenjutsu duel; each one mercilessly striking each other half a dozen times in the space of a few seconds. Naruto's skill with the sword was proving superior to Itachi's however, who preferred to fight with ninjutsu and illusions. He was like a storm raining down on Itachi. Above, below, left, right, in front, behind; Naruto kept unleashing blow after blow that Itachi, who in his exhaustion could only barely keep up with thanks to his sharingan.

Lashing out with a kick, Itachi managed to create some distance between them before he flies through a series of hand seals in half a second and calls out - "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" and unleashes a fireball that flies toward Naruto with incredible speed.

Still airborne from the kick, Naruto quickly forms a cross hand seal and calls out – "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" and a single clone appears a small distance away to which Naruto substitutes with, letting the clone take the hit.

Quickly gaining his bearings and rushing forward, Naruto sends a stream of lightning flying towards Itachi then blurs behind him he can attack him on two sides at once. Itachi only barely manages to fire off a quick Futon: Daitoppa to disperse the lightning and bring up his tanto to block Naruto's fierce overhand strike. He quickly realizes his mistake in trying to block instead of redirect when the sheer force of the impact almost breaks his wrist due to Naruto's physical strength being greater than his own.

With their blades locked, Itachi begins pushing with all his strength; even using some of his remaining chakra to try and reinforce the effort. Despite the Uchiha's best efforts however, Naruto's strength begins overwhelming his own and he can only watch as Naruto's sword slowly but surely makes its way closer to Itachi's throat. With the blond's murderous red eyes glaring inches away from his own, Itachi performs a desperate move and head buts Naruto, breaking his nose and causing his concentration to falter for a split second. That is enough however, for Itachi to back away and gain some distance.

Panting heavily, Itachi thinks - _'I am becoming dangerously low on chakra and my exhaustion is beginning to slow my movements. I do not think I would be able to survive another clash and even if I did, I would easily fall to the next. If this continues I will lose the fight and as far gone as Naruto is; it will mean my death.'_

Itachi watches as Naruto recovers and knowing he had only one thing that could save him despite the risks of using it again, takes a moment to prepare himself for the coming pain while thinking –_ 'It seems I have no choice.'_

Itachi meets Naruto's charge with his own and forced him into a blade lock. The Uchiha then channeled a large amount of chakra to his eyes, which begin to leak blood even as the tomoe morph into the three-bladed shuriken shape of his mangekyou sharingan. Naruto, so lost in his rage does not even register the threat as he continues to stare murderously into Itachi's eyes.

Kyuubi, who had been observing the battle, recognized the danger in the eyes Itachi now displayed and felt a surge of fear rise unbidden as he tries to warn his jinchuuriki - _**"DO NOT LOOK INTO THOSE EYES BOY!" **_

The fox's warning breaks through the fog of Naruto's rage but it is too late. With a strained voice, Itachi whispers - "Tsukuyomi"

And Naruto's world fell into darkness.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Three Days Later<strong>_

Naruto slowly came back into awareness feeling an intense pain in his head. Slowly, he opened his eyes to the sight of a white ceiling.

_'Where am I?'_

As his eyes adjusted to the bright light, Naruto looked around his room and came to the conclusion that he was in the hospital. A quick glance down at himself only supported this conclusion when it was revealed that he was clad only in a pair of white trouser shorts. Looking around for his clothes, Naruto notices them folded neatly on a nearby table with his sword sheathed and propped up next to it. That dilemma solved, Naruto shakes his head and tries to get his thoughts in order.

_'How did I get here? Last thing I remember is...'_

In a flash it all returned. Itachi; he fought him and lost.

_**"That's right you lost you idiot boy! That blasted Uchiha told confirmed everything that I've ever told you about him and you immediately lost control and attacked him in a fit of uncontrolled rage! Your foolishness could have cost us everything!" **_- Kyuubi roared in his mind, adding to his already splitting headache.

Naruto winces and presses a palm against his head, trying to relieve the pressure. He is however saved from responding by the arrival of the Hokage, who was no doubt informed the second he woke up.

"How are you feeling Naruto-kun?" - The elderly Hokage asks kindly.

"I'm alive, that is sufficient." - Naruto responds shortly while looking down at the bed with his hair shadowing his eyes.

Hiruzen sighs in exasperation, saying - "Fine then, I'll get straight to the point. We found you collapsed in the Uchiha district surrounded by bodies in an almost comatose state that seems to be the result of some extraordinarily powerful genjutsu. You have been unconscious for three days and I need to know what happened."

Naruto lays back into the bed with a sigh, but explains all the same - "Something drew me out of my rest during the night and-"

"By something, I will assume you mean the Kyuubi told you." - Hiruzen interjects pointedly.

Naruto's face betrays his surprise only for a second, but the Hokage caught it and explains - "I know the Kyuubi is active inside of you now. During our investigation of the Uchiha district, we found traces of the Kyuubi's chakra in the air; not enough to be felt by the rest of the village, but enough to guess there was a battle of some sort, which is indicative that the Kyuubi had awakened from its dormant state sometime prior to the incident."

Naruto nods at the explanation, neither confirming nor denying it and resumes his explanation saying – "Fine yes, the Kyuubi woke me up and told me to stretch out my senses. Upon doing so, I noticed several active chakra signatures disappearing all at once. Deciding to investigate, I made my way to the source which turned out to be the Uchiha district."

Scowling in remembrance, Naruto continues, saying – "I found Itachi just after he finished with his little brother. We exchanged words and I decided to attack him using the Kyuubi's chakra, figuring I could get the drop on him and for a while it worked. I was winning the battle; however I lost focus. The last thing I can remember is hearing Itachi call out some technique, Tsukuyomi I believe and then I woke up here. That's it."

After hearing Naruto's explanation, Hiruzen turns away with a look of despair on his face saying – "It is as I feared then; Itachi has gone rogue after murdering his clan. Young Sasuke said the same thing, but I was hesitant to believe one of my best agents could commit such an atrocity."

Naruto curiously asks – "Do you know what prompted this Hokage-sama?"

Seemingly lost in sadness, Hiruzen pulls the tip of his Hokage hat over his eyes as he says – "No I don't Naruto-kun; I wish I did though."

"_**The old man is lying." **_– Kyuubi interjects.

'_What makes you think that?'_ – Naruto mentally asks in surprise while keeping his face carefully blank so as not to draw the attention of the Hokage.

"_**I can sense negative emotions boy. When he said he did not know why the Uchiha went rogue, his heartbeat changed and I felt a large surge of guilt coming from him. This is indicative of a lie. Meaning, he does know why the Uchiha did what he did and he feels guilty about it." **_– Kyuubi answers in a voice of absolute certainty.

'_So, yet more secrets are being kept from me. I don't know why I'm surprised. It seems I truly cannot trust anyone in this village.' _– Naruto snarls mentally, much to the Kyuubi's excitement.

'_**It's nearly time; one final push should do it.' **_– Kyuubi thinks with a sinister chuckle.

Deciding he needed to get out of here before he let something slip, Naruto asks – "Am I free to leave Hokage-sama?"

This question jerks Hiruzen out of his thoughts as he sends a surprised look at Naruto and asks – "So soon Naruto? You just woke up from three-day coma, you need time to rest."

Naruto shakes his head in disagreement and responds – "No, I feel fine and I want to leave. However, if you insist on me resting, I can do it at the tower. I would not be able to truly rest while I am here due to the presence of the villagers. You never know when some disgruntled doctor will try to take advantage of my weakened state."

Sighing in resignation, the Hokage says – "Fine, go; but I expect you to take it easy for a few days and work on recovering your strength before you begin any intense training."

Fully intending to disregard the advice, Naruto nevertheless nods in acknowledgment so that he can get back to the tower and away from the villagers faster. The Hokage sighs and leaves, no doubt heading back to his office. After pulling on his clothes and sword, Naruto shunshins away.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Tower – Forest of Death<strong>_

Arriving back at the tower, he storms his way straight through it to his room, barely giving a nod of acknowledgment to Anko along the way so lost was he in his building rage.

The Kyuubi, sensing Naruto was at his breaking point, decided to make his move and says - _**"Come to the mindscape boy. There is something you must know."**_

Scowling, the blond heads to his room and latches the door shut. Sitting down on the floor with his legs and arms crossed, he closes his eyes and enters his mindscape to see what was so important. Upon hearing his feet land in the splashing water, Naruto opens his eyes to reveal the sight of the familiar sewer. Following the now familiar red glow, the blond arrives at the Kyuubi's chamber and asks - "So what is so important Kyuubi?"

Disregarding the question, the Kyuubi adopts a curious expression as he says - **"Tell me boy, how do you feel about the village now?"**

Frowning deeply, Naruto retorts - "What the hell does that have to do with anything Kyuubi? You said there was something I needed to know; now tell me."

The fox snarls and growls - **"Answer the question boy, now!"**

Frustrated, Naruto blurts out - "Damn it fox, Konoha is my village that I will fight to protect alright!"

_'Wait...'_

Flabbergasted, Naruto shakes his head frantically and asks - "What? What did I just say?"

Looking at the fox that has a blank expression on its face, Naruto asks - "What the hell fox? Why do I suddenly feel this way? What is going on?"

**"It is as I feared then. It seems I was unable to completely negate the technique." **- Kyuubi rumbles out.

Looking sharply at the fox, Naruto demands - "What are you talking about? Tell me!"

Bringing its massive head down so an enormous crimson eye was level with the teen, the Kyuubi asks - **"Use your head boy; you were unconscious for three days! Vulnerable in enemy territory! Did you think no one would try to take advantage?"**

Naruto's fury starts to boil, as he responds - "No; I would be foolish if I thought that. Do you mean to tell me something happened?"

The great fox nods and smiling evilly, it asks - **"Would you like me to show you what happened? Would you like to see how far this village will go to keep you under control?"**

A sick feeling building in his gut, Naruto nods and does not resist as Kyuubi brings a tip of one of its tails through the bars of the cage and presses it to the center of Naruto's forehead.

**"Know the truth Naruto and break through the fog of lies that this village has created around you." **- Kyuubi says before a memory starts playing in his brain.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback<em>

_Naruto opens his eyes to see himself lying in the hospital bed motionless. Watching anxiously for what is to happen, his sharp ears pick up the sound of wood tapping on concrete, growing closer and closer to his room._

_Tap_

_Tap_

_Tap_

_Tap_

_The door opens revealing an elderly man with spiky black hair and dark skin carrying a cane. The man is heavily bandaged along his upper torso and face with only one brown eye and an x shaped scar on his chin being visible on his face. This man is Shimura Danzo, one of the military advisers on the village council and the secret leader of ROOT. Naruto recognized him easily as Itachi's warnings about the man he received during his training trip flashed through his mind._

_His lone brown eye stares without blinking at the jinchuuriki as he makes his way to the blond's bedside and begins speaking._

"_You are dangerous Uzumaki; angry and rebellious are not good traits for the village weapon. I may not be able to take you now, but I can still force you to submit to the purpose you were made for."_

_The man pulls away the bandages around his right eye, revealing a mangekyou sharingan. Standing over the unconscious jinchuuriki, he forces open the blond's eye and gazes directly into it with the sharingan._

"_You will protect Konoha, whether you want to or not. __Kotoamatsukami__."_

_End Flashback_

* * *

><p>The memory fades and Naruto returns to the present time in his mindscape, which quickly starts shaking as Naruto's rage peaks.<p>

"THAT BASTARD TRIED TO PLACE A MIND CONTROLLING GENJUTSU ON ME!" - Naruto roars in absolute fury as he begins to furiously pace back and forth around the chamber.

"**Yes he did and he would have succeeded if not for my presence. That particular technique is usually impossible to break. It is only because of your strong will and my presence here negating some of the effects that you are able to notice it." **- Kyuubi explains in a knowing voice to which Naruto only snarls in response.

Kyuubi, knowing the moment had finally arrived, says the words that will bind the boy to him forever. Adopting the same voice it used to tempt him previously, the one that radiated the promise of power, it says - **"You see Naruto, this village will never change. They will forever see you as a weapon and nothing more. You must break the chains that bind you to this place. I can help you do that." **

Kyuubi pauses to let his statement sink in and continues - **"You know what I ask Naruto. Pledge yourself to me and I will make you stronger than anyone in this pathetic village. Embrace your inner darkness and I will train you in all that I know; more than enough to make the worms in this pathetic village tremble at your feet."**

Naruto stops and looks at his trembling hands, saying - "You are the only one who has been completely truthful to me in my life. Everything you said about my sensei, this village, all of it has turned out to be truth. I am _tired _of being manipulated by this village."

Clenching his fists, Naruto looks up at the great fox and kneels, saying - "I pledge myself to your teachings."

The fox, not wanting to seem too eager lest the boy be suspicious, warns the blond by saying - **"Be warned Naruto, this will be unlike anything you have undertaken. I will not go easy on you nor will I show mercy. You will either succeed; or you will die."**

Naruto's resolve does not falter at the warning. He only raises his head allowing the Kyuubi to see the indomitable will in his gaze and says - "My answer remains the same, I accept."

"**Good; then we will begin immediately."**

* * *

><p>And begin it did; there was no slow start, no easing into it. Kyuubi immediately began working Naruto to the brink of collapse from the very first day and every day after. For the next two years, there was nothing but intense training designed to hone his body into perfection; for the Kyuubi would demand no less than that.<p>

Every morning at dawn he would wake up, eat a calorie packed breakfast and begin his morning workout. First he worked on building his strength and had a regiment which consisted of 1000 push-ups, 1000 pull-ups, 500 sit-ups, 500 curls and 300 squats, all of it being done without chakra enhancement and often weighed down in some manner. Next he focused on his speed and endurance. During this time he ran many laps around the 44th training ground with only a few breaks in between them. Sometimes he ran using his legs, other times he ran on his hands and other times he would only use his fingers.

The end of his morning workout was dedicated to refining his sword technique. He did this by running through drills and sequences with each movement having to be perfect, otherwise he would be forced to stop and perform the same move over and over until it reached a level of perfection Kyuubi was satisfied with. At which point he would start the sequence over and not dare to repeat the mistake again before moving on to the next. It was constant repetition, with the same movements being done over and over to ingrain it into his muscle memory until he could run through an entire sequence in seconds without a single mistake.

Naruto's muscles ripped and tore constantly during this time, causing him excruciating pain that was only compounded when the Kyuubi used his chakra to heal the wounds enough so he could keep going. By the end of the morning workout, every single part of his body screamed in agony, from both the workout and Kyuubi's healing. It was torture, it was agony and it made Naruto hate the Kyuubi greatly. But that was good, because Naruto used his hate to make himself stronger. He nurtured it and tucked it away until he needed it, using it to rejuvenate his weary body during moments of exhaustion.

After a lunch to recover his energy, he spent the rest of the day on training and refining his use of chakra. It quickly became apparent that Naruto's control over his chakra was beyond atrocious. While he had incredible amounts of chakra, he had almost no control over it and the only reason he could do the things he could was due to the fact that he spent almost ten times the amount of chakra necessary to do it.

Kyuubi did not like that one bit and started mercilessly drilling Naruto in every chakra control exercise that it knew and demanded that he gain sufficient proficiency in them all. This was even more difficult than his morning workout and often left him nearly depleted of chakra, which considering the amount he had was quite a feat. It was only after two months of non-stop chakra control exercises that Naruto finally managed to bring his control into an acceptable range. This lead to the Kyuubi to direct him to began working on ways he could use his immense chakra capacity to his advantage.

Seeing as he did not have the control to perform normal ninjutsu beyond a few specialized techniques, Naruto began working towards using it in a way that enhanced his martial prowess, such as when he began infusing his fire element into his sword. It was a technique that was exclusive to Naruto, seeing as nobody else would have the chakra to ever recreate it.

What he did was draw on a very large amount of katon chakra and start compressing and molding it around the blade of his sword. It was an incredible undertaking but Naruto eventually made it work. The end result left his sword sheathed in an aura of crimson flames with the blade glowing white-hot almost to the point of melting. It was a magnificent technique that enabled his sword to cut through all but the strongest of materials and Naruto was very eager to try it on a living foe.

Naruto's life as a ninja was not idle during this time either. While rare, Naruto did occasionally find some time away from Kyuubi's training to spar and train with Anko per the demands of his apprenticeship to her. And while he did not learn much from her anymore, seeing as Kyuubi's training made him pretty strong, Anko didn't care as she greatly enjoyed having someone to train and fight without having to hold back. It was near the middle of the second year that his apprenticeship ended and he was given the ANBU trials, which he of course passed with ease due to his training with Kyuubi making him high jonin in terms of strength and skill after one and a half years of constant training.

After passing his tests, Naruto was placed on Anko's squad; no doubt due to the machinations of the Hokage in an effort to keep him appeased and remove any temptation he might have to defect while away on a mission somewhere. Not that he would have left anyway, seeing as after his ANBU career began in earnest, he became almost content in his supposed duties to the village. He was always given a challenging mission, his squad never receiving anything below an A-Rank mission. It provided Naruto with many enemies to fight; some weak and some strong, but enemies all the same and Naruto relished every kill.

Through it all however, Naruto never lost sight of his goal; to become strong enough to show the village his might. While he was constantly tempted to just kill everyone, he knew that the time had not yet come for the village's reckoning. It was at Kyuubi's urging that Naruto decided to be patient and wait for the right opportunity to extract his vengeance. So he would continue waiting, all the while pretending to be loyal to his so-called village.

Little did the biju know that the loyalty his jinchuuriki held toward it would be tested soon and the darkness that was consuming the blond would soon be fighting against the spark of light remaining in him.

* * *

><p><strong>There is the third chapter. I want to say thanks for the mix of positive and supportive reviews that I received for the previous chapter. This was the final chapter before I begin getting into the events seen in series. Let me know what you think!<strong>


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